The practices of colonialism and the processes of decolonisation did not end the humiliation of populations in Africa, Asia and Latin America who continue to be marked as secondary citizens, suffering from stigma that is repeated in the existing systems surrounding passports and migration. It has become part of the identity of states, from China’s rhetoric of losing face to France’s re-interpretation of its collaboration/resistance with the Germans. Badie explains that ‘humiliation is memory it is collective narrative, and even more crucially, it is a founding narrative’ (3). The problem is that while humiliation might be a political instrument for those in power, it has severe social consequences on entire nations. The United Nations system of sovereign states is therefore undermined by its decision-making structure, by the ongoing labelling of states as ‘rogue’ or ‘immoral’ and by the non-proliferation treaties that allow for some states to become nuclear powers while forbidding others from reaching equal status. The exclusion of states from ‘clubs’ - such as the G7, UNSC and NATO, for example - serves to relegate them to secondary status. This strategy is far from over, however, as international organisations continue to impose a hierarchy of powers in a world that is supposed to be, at least in rhetoric, horizontal. The use of humiliation in statecraft has been a weapon wielded by diplomats representing the most powerful nations of the time.
Following the fall of the Soviet Union, Russian leaders were marginalised and even derided, a behaviour that Western countries often try to perpetuate today. Germany was humiliated after World War I in the Treaty of Versailles, precipitating the rise of Hitler and the outbreak of World War II. Entrenched in a realist Westphalian world where ‘the strong do what they will and the weak suffer what they must’ (Thucydides), states have been deliberately humiliating one another throughout history: China was brought to its knees after its defeat in the Opium Wars, first by the British and Europeans and later by the Japanese. It is systematised, legalised and applied liberally by the dominant powers in the international system. Humiliation, Badie argues, has become a norm in International Relations. This is a pity as the author, Bertrand Badie, makes an important contribution to International Relations theory here, and his many historical examples of political humiliation are fascinating.
While the structure is clearly set out, with a historical/theoretical overview and a thorough analysis of the contemporary social and political consequences of this systemic practice of humiliation, the style remains densely academic, thereby reaching a limited audience. The book combines International Relations theory, political psychology and sociology to address the enduring theme of humiliation among nations. Humiliation in International Relations: A Pathology of Contemporary International Systems was originally published in French in 2014.
Humiliation in International Relations: A Pathology of Contemporary International Systems. While Badie’s optimism regarding the capacity of greater social integration to quell the consequences of humiliation may not convince all readers, this important book and its fascinating historical examples are more relevant than ever, writes Caroline Varin. In H umilitation in International Relations: A Pathology of Contemporary International Systems, B ertrand Badie addresses the longstanding use of humiliation as a systemic practice wielded by dominant powers within the international state system.
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